1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to general purpose utility bands used to bind a wide variety of items, including serving as a belt to secure clothing. More specifically, the present invention provides an improved fastening device for such binding devices.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various devices for binding and holding items together have been used for many years. These binding devices, such as elastic bands, string, ropes, straps and belts hold items together for convenience of handling and maintaining order.
One of the major areas for concern with respect to such binding devices has been to find an easy-to-use yet reliable fastening means to secure such devices together. Although buckles and ties continue to be used due to their simplicity and general utility, these devices are deficient in numerous respects. First, conventional buckles, such as a standard clothing belt buckle, normally are somewhat difficult to fasten and unfasten and often have limited adjustability. For instance, a standard belt buckle (i.e. employing a buckle frame, multiple punch holes in the belt, a tongue passing through one of the punch holes and securing against the frame, and a keeper to secure the loose tip of the belt), is known to have limited adjustability (with punch holes usually positioned about 1 inch apart) and as requiring additional slack beyond the desired fastened length to secure the tongue in the punch hole. Further, if the belt is too long, the loose tip of the belt must be secured in some manner to avoid interfering with the wearer. Numerous other belt designs have been suggested to avoid some or all of these problems, but none are considered entirely successful.
One product which has been widely employed as a fastening means is hook-and-loop fabric, such as that sold under the trademark VELCRO. Although hook-and-loop is being used for many fastening and binding projects, it has a number of drawbacks when applied to a clothing belt or in conjunction with other general utility binding bands.
For example, applicant is aware of at least one instance where hook-and-loop material was attached to a clothing belt--with a long length of hook material applied to one end of the belt, and a long length of complementary loop material applied to the opposite face of the belt at the opposite end. In this instance the limited shear strength of the hook-and-loop material was insufficient to retain the belt adequately in a closed position. Moreover, as is known, with heavy use (and especially with use involving substantial shear) the hook-and-loop material rapidly fatigues and no longer maintains its fastening strength. Accordingly, the operation and appearance of this belt steadily deteriorated over time.
Other examples of use of hook-and-loop fasteners for general utility projects include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,279,008 issued Oct. 18, 1966, to Wallach (for a ski binding strap); 3,383,738 issued May 21, 1968, to Fox et al. (for a chair binding strap); 3,679,530 issued Jul. 25, 1972, to Perina (for general attachment between non-planar surfaces); 3,841,648 issued Oct. 15, 1974, to Meyer (for a ski binding strap); 3,893,725 issued Jul. 8, 1975, to Coulter et al. (for a container latching device); D720,779 issued Oct. 4, 1983, to Steinberg (for a shoelace bow knot retainer); 4,878,274 issued Nov. 7, 1989, to Patricy (for general securement system, such as for skis); and British Patent 1,161,406 issued Aug. 13, 1969, to Smith (for a general fastening means). In each of these examples, the hook-and-loop systems disclosed comprise a single layer of hook material on one strap face and another single layer of loop material on another strap face. Although each of these systems may work adequately well for their stated purposes, each has the same problems with wear and shear which was discussed above with regard to the clothing belt design.
In light of the foregoing, it is a primary object of the present invention to create a binding device which has the convenience of hook-and-loop fasteners, but is more reliable and less prone to wear than existing fastening devices.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a binding device that is easy to install and remove without damaging the bound item.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a binding device employing hook-and-loop fasteners which is more resistant to lateral shear forces than existing hook-and-loop fasteners.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a binding device which can be employed as a clothing belt with a reliable and aesthetically appealing method of fastening it to itself.
These and other objects of the present invention will become evident from review of the following specification.